I don't think I've ever written a public news post in my life, but the
recent topic of conversation affects me deeply.

With all the Vampires posting saying how the embrace is a gift, giving
more freedom to those that are gifted with it.. I felt like adding to
the voices calling this a lie. It is a lie, one that has been around for
centuries.

Being a vampire gives you less freedom then a common slave, even if you
are lucky enough to be given the "gift" by a sire who views you as a
friend, you are still bound to their will, they can control your every
action.

The embrace itself provokes changes within the body of the embraced, the
most obvious is the need for blood. It is not a choice you can make,
once you have become "gifted" you HAVE TO drink blood, there is no
choice involved. You can "choose" to not drink blood, to go without.
Unfortunatly, a Vampire's blood levels drop constantly and, eventually,
the vampire will feed, whether they want to or not.

The vampire goes into a rage, attacking anything they see which could
possibly provide them with blood. During this, the vampire has almost no
control over their actions. They attack whether they want to or not.

Another change - The sun becomes harmful to a Vampire. Even the smallest
exposure can render a Vampire blind, while prolonged exposure can lead
to death. A brave vampire can run from dark spot to dark spot, hiding in
the darkness that has become their home, not realising that their
"freedom" has become exceptionally limited.

And, my final point, the Vampire's ultimate defense mechanism - the
mistform. A vampire no longer leaves a corpse when they die. Infact,
they do not actually die. While many would see this as beneficial, it is
worse then death. When you die, your soul travels to the Hall of the
Underking, you see several images, and you appear outside the cave,
bearing the grace of the gods.

A vampire gets none of this. They revert to their mist-like form. Unable
to take any action bar movement. Once they find a good place, they
"earthmeld". Here, they rebuild their body. This is not an easy process
at all, it takes time and effort. Once rebuilt, they can Rise from
beneath the earth. Unlike a normal person, however, they do not gain the
benefit of the god's grace.

Does any of that sound like freedom? Even the lowliest of commoners has
some control over their life. They can choose when to go outside, they
can choose what to eat for dinner, as well as when. They can lead a
normal life. While a Vampire gets, at most, the choice of when and what
they eat. A normal life, in an undead body? A literal living corpse?
What type of freedom is that?

Its a fools belief, to think that a Vampire is ever free. On the same
thought, it is a fool that thinks Vampirism is the way to power. It is a
path to a poor imitation of imortality. Vampirism is a curse, not the
gift others would lead you to believe.

Lachlan O'Lyryus

Penned by my hand on the 6th of Severin, in the year 131 MA.